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eating while bf?

Hi, I'm breastfeeding a 1 month baby and my mom says everytime im going to eat something special like seafood risotto or some beans that it's going to give cramps to the baby, is that possible? is there a direct relation between what i'm eating and the milk? Another doubt, can a breastfeeding baby have diarrea? i've changed my baby's diaper 4 times in the morning and she usually uses 6 o 7 in a day, so it seems a lot.

Re: eating while bf?

Eat what you want! Think of mothers in places like south America where beans are a staple in the diet. If they couldn't eat beans, what would they eat? Or think of mothers in places where many foods are spicy, for example. If they couldn't eat spicy foods while bfeeding, what would they eat? I've read that very little of what makes us gassy when we eat beans is actually passed through into the milk. I think this is just one of those old wives tales.

Re: eating while bf?

While some women swear that certain foods give their baby gas, my own experience was that what I ate made no difference. I think a lot "high gas foods" is superstition. Think about it - around the world, women breastfeed their babies while eating lots of spicy foods, beans, and vegetables! So I say eat your normal foods and don't worry about it. ETA: Haha! Hannah! We think alike!

Also, totally normal for a BF'd baby to poop up to like, 100 times a day. Well, maybe that's an exaggeration, but for a while Joe was easily hitting 20! Breastmilk is quickly digested so it moves through pretty quickly. That said, it's also normal for babies to poop way less after a month or two, and go days or even 10 days between! So basically, any kind of poop is normal. If you're seeing lots of wets, you don't need to worry.

You can call me JoMo!

Mom to baby boy Joe, born 5/4/09 and breastfed for more than two and a half years, and baby girl Maggie, born 7/9/12.

Re: eating while bf?

Eat what you want. Unless your LO actually has allergies, you probably won't have any problems. DS1 wouldn't eat regular baby food and our pediatrician commented that she saw that in breastfed babies, especially when mom was from a culture that ate highly spiced food (Indian, Middle Eastern, etc.). She figured it was that the breast milk was a lot less bland than the baby food.

As to the poops, about the time you get comfortable with having approximately a bazillion poopy diapers a day, your LO will start only pooping on alternate Thursdays or during a full moon. Two useful words for that time: "poovalanche" (invented by DH) and "poonami" (invented by me).